Pitching DeRenne to the state

State Department of Transportation Commissioner Vance C. Smith was briefed Monday on the city of Savannah's public planning process for DeRenne Avenue.

City Manager Michael Brown traveled to Atlanta with city staffers Bob Scanlon and Susan Broker to show Smith and his top administrators the design concepts for reworking DeRenne, which is a state road all the way to Abercorn Street. Brown and company also went over the extensive public meetings process for community outreach. State and federal funding will be needed, but the $18 million the city has set aside in SPLOST funding is helping expedite state interest, Broker said.

State officials, she said, challenged them to move to preliminary engineering once City Council approves a concept. Design options are expected to be presented to council this month for approval.

The city trio also had a bit of fortuitous timing. Turns out Commissioner Smith had been in Savannah for the groundbreaking at Truman Parkway. He told the group he had a long wait coming off 516 at DeRenne while he and other mid-morning drivers backed up for their chance to turn right onto White Bluff Road.